Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate he has made of the number of people of state pension age who will not be eligible for the £150 council tax rebate because they live in properties with tax bands E to H; and what assessment the Government made of the potential impact on that group before restricting eligibility to people in properties in Council Tax bands A to D.

The Government understands the pressures that people across the UK are facing with the cost of living. This is why the Government is providing over £15 billion in further support targeted towards those with the greatest need. From the Autumn, over eight million pensioner households who receive the winter fuel payment, will receive an extra one-off pensioner cost-of-living payment of £300 this year to help cover the rising cost of energy this winter.

Local authorities in England have received £144 million of discretionary funding to support households that are not eligible for the council tax rebate, including households in bands E-H. Local authorities are best-placed to determine how this support should be targeted, informed by guidance from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities.

Devolved governments in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are receiving Barnett funding as a result of the council tax rebate and associated discretionary funding in England.